It was a 6-hour journey made on taxi, bus, and “chalupa” (a canoe with high speed motor).  Alas, my friend Lillian and I have made it to Colombia’s religious mecca, Mompox.  It is hot as balls here.  So hot that, after just one hour of walking by the Magdalena River, Lillian and I promptly turned around and headed back to Richard’s brand new “La Casa Amarilla” hostel for an afternoon nap.

Mompox itself is a lazy river town with lots of churches and colonial homes and buildings.  It actually reminds me a lot of the river towns in Laos, but here the heat is so stifling that the only thing you can do comfortably is sit or sleep.  A fan or (even better) air conditioning is necessary even in the shade.  

The men here have either never seen or are simply fascinated by us — two young Chinese-American women in Colombia.  In just half an hour, we must have received about a dozen whistles and head-to-toe looks.  The plan here is quite simple: relax and learn more about/from Richard.

I had corresponded with Richard on my previous trip to Colombia, when he gave me the lay of the land, a few suggested itineraries, and a wealth of knowledge of his now-beloved country.  Who needs Lonely Planet, when you have an expat from England and the U.S.?  Richard really has proven to be my very own travel guide.  Having lived here for over a year, I came here to pick his brain and gain some Colombian knowledge from him.  His new hostel is a ideally located by the local bar, the river, and the city’s prettiest church, La Iglesia Santa Barbara — which really does look as he had described it to me (“like a yellow wedding cake”).  It’s a simple home with a front room, TV lounge, and two private rooms, a dormitory that can house about eight people comfortably, and kitchen that surround a garden.  Yesterday, Richard gardened in the late afternoon heat, stripping the soil of rocks and planting a few bougainvillea seedlings.   

Last night, we treated Richard and Alba to a typical Colombian dinner (meat, starch, and salad), and then watched 3:10 to Yuma.  When I went to bed, I half-dreamt that the room out back was haunted by a ghost and, when Richard asked how I slept this morning and I told him about my dream, he informed me that the room I dreamt of might in fact be haunted by its previous owner!  

Today, Lillian woke with a very sharp pain in her neck (much like mine earlier this fall).  She treated herself to a massage while I worked furiously on more reviews for the guidebook.  Tonight, we hope to cook a Colombian meal and drink some Aguila!

…. I failed to procure a solid internet connection, so now it’s the day after and Lil and I bid farewell to Richard and Mompox.  We are now in a very cute little town called Coveñas on the coast.  Transportation was one step harder this time: motorcab to the town center, taxi to Bodega, chalupa to Bagangue, taxi to Sincelejo, bus to Tolú, and a final bus change to Coveñas.   It was a 6 hour trip door to door.  By the time we made it to our new pad called Hotel La Fragata, we were ready for a wash.  We bodysurfed in the ocean for a bit and then took a dip in the pool, where we drank Aguilas at the pool bar.  We then walked to Punta de Piedra, about a half mile down the beach.  There are very few visitors this time of year, but plenty of houses on the beach that are available for rent.  Lil and I appear to be the only foreigners in town.  Tomorrow I will do some more research on Coveñas, and then we hope to be in Tolú tomorrow night, where I can finally upload this update!

The last few nights of Lil’s visit will be spent on the San Bernando Islands.  We will hope to say for 2-3 nights, then it’s back to Cartagena for her and up to the Zona Cafeteria for me.